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MIAA Football Showdown Looms

Submitted by Karen Bos on Thu, 2000-10-26 08:07

In an MIAA football showdown that has an all-too-familiar ring, the Flying Dutchmen of Hope will meet the Britonsof Albion Saturday (Oct. 30) with first place in the conferencestandings on the line. Kickoff at Albion's Sprankle-Sprandel Stadium will be 1 p.m. The game will be broadcast by WHTC-AM (1450) and WFUR-FM (102.9). It will also be broadcast on the internet (www.hope.edu). Both teams are undefeated in conference games, thedefending champion Britons standing 4-0 and the Flying Dutchmenat 3-0. This is not new territory for these teams. In fact, theMIAA championship has been won 21 of the last 24 years by eitherAlbion (12 times) or Hope (9 times). It's a rivalry that began in 1926. Albion holds a 34-29-7advantage in the series, including a 44-0 rout of the Dutchmen ayear ago, also at Albion. The path to this game has been very similar for both teams. Each team started out the season with an overtime loss. Afterlosing their first two games, the Britons (5-2) have won fivein-a-row. Hope (3-3), meanwhile, has a three game winningstreak after opening with three consecutive losses. "We are very excited about this game," said coach DeanKreps. "You always hope that a game with a traditional rivalwill carry championship implications." This year's MIAA race has an added incentive because theleague champion will receive a berth in the NCAA Division IIIplayoffs. "Right now we are focussed on Albion, but we also know thereis alot of conference football to be played after Saturday," saidKreps. The Flying Dutchmen travel to Olivet on Nov. 6 andentertain Kalamazoo on Nov. 13. Through three conference games, the Flying Dutchmen havebeen equally impressive on offense and defense. Hope has scoredat least one touchdown in 12 consecutive quarters in averaging 47points a game. They've outscored league opponents 77-0 in thefirst half while allowing 9.7 points a game. Senior receiver Matt Handzo (Clinton Township/DeLaSalle HS)has moved into second place on the Hope all-time pass receptionlist. He is tied with Paul Damon (1977-80) at 83 catches. Theall-time record is 107 catches by Bill Vanderbilt, Jr. (1984-87). Junior quarterback J.D. Graves (Troy/Athens HS) is on trackto challenge the Hope single season total offense record. Themark is 1,860 yards (207 yards per game) by Greg Heeres in 1984. Graves is averaging 276.8 yards per game (1,661 yards) throughsix games.